Convertible studio sofa and bed



" March 11', 1936.

M. FOX

CONVERTIBLE STUDIO SOFA AND BED 3' Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 17, 1934March 17, 1936.

M. FOX

CONVERTIBLE STUDIO SOFA AND BED Fil'ed Dec. 17, 1934 v 3 Sheets-Sheet 2March 17, 1936. M. FOX

CONVERTIBLE swumo SOFA um BED FiledDec. .17, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Vtion of the back being upholstered in the Patented Mar. 17, 1936 H2,034,465 CONVERTIBLE s'rio sore sen Martin Fox, Chicago, BL, assignorto The Seng Company, Chicago, Ill.

Application December 17, 1934, Serial No; 757,925

4 Claims.

My invention is animprovement in divans or sofas of that particular typein which the seat and back are movable in respect to the main supportingframe for conversion to abed.

In the usual construction of an article of f urniture of this generalcharacter it is customary to move the seat to a position in front of themainsupporting frame and fold the back down upon the latter so that theseat and back will cooperate in converting the divan to a bed. the upperportion of the seat and rear porform of mattresses which are broughttogether in providing a bed of the desired width. In this form of divanor sofa it is a common practice to so construct the movable parts thatin theoperation of swinging the backto bed position it requiresmovementof the divan or sofa away from the wall against which thearticle of furniture is ordinarily placed, and to facilitate thismovement the main frame is supported on rollers,

while in that type of convertible divan in which the seat section isslidable over the main frame carrying the foldable back said seatsection is likewise supported on rollers. It is conceivable thereforethat a divan or sofa of such construction possesses disadvantages thatdetract from its general usefulness, with particular reference to t l';damage to the floor by the rollers supporting the movable sections, aswell as the inconvenience of having to move the entire structure -inconverting from a divan to abed and in replacing the article offurniture for day use.

Furthermore, inthat type of convertible divan or sofa in which thesection having the seat is slidable with respect to the sectionon whichthe foldable back is mounted locking meansare necessary to preventaccidental movement of" the seat section when the article of furnitureis being used as a divan or sofa.

In these circumstances it is the main purpose of my invention to providea special form of link connection between the back and main supportingframe whereby the divan or sofa may retain its position with respect tothe wall against or near which it is placed for a slight rearwardinclination of the back, in association with a seat section movable toprovide the extension forming a part of the bed is not dragged over theiioor but is operated in a more desirable manner as well as firmlysupported in both positions without the employment of locking means.

A further object of my invention is to provide a convertible divan orsofa of economical construction without sacrificing durability and con-'venience of operation.-

With these principal objects in view my invention consists principallyin the form of connection between the foldable back and main sup- 5porting frame on which it is mounted, in association with a movable seatsection and main supporting frame, including in each instance theemployment of counterbalancing springs which assist in the operation ofconverting the divan or 10 sofa to bed form, and vice versa; all ashereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the structure arranged as a divanor sofa.

Fig. 2 is a. similar view with the seat section extended and the backpartly folded on to the main supporting frame.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view with the seat and back sections arranged inbed form, the mattress being indicated in dotted lines.

Fig. 4 is a similar view with the seat and back sections in position foruse of the article of furniture as ,a divan.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the metal frames of the seat and back sectionsin bed position.

Fig. 6 is. a detail perspective view of one end of the seat and backframe to show the linkv con-' nections adapted for association with themain supporting frame, and including the counterbalancing springs, and IFig. '7 is a similar view of the fixtures at the other end of the seatand back frames.

In carrying out my invention the main frame 9 of the structure is in theform of a box with theusual side pieces I0, connected by the front andback pieces l2, I3, said box or main frame being provided at its cornerswith broad feet M for firmly suporting the structure in position on thefloor, and. in the present instance the back, 40 referred to generallyby the numeral I5, is connected to the rear end of this main frame by aspecial arrangement of links and counterbalancing springs, hereinafterdescribed, and for cooperation the seat section I6 is preferablyconnected to the frame by an arrangement of links and counterbalancingsprings, whereby the said 5 seat section may be extended into positionin front of the supporting frame and the back lowered thereon inconverting the divan or sofa to bed form.

Boththe seat and back sections of the convertible divan and bed are madeup of longitudinal and transverse angle bars I I, I8 and I9, 55

20 respectively, riveted together'where they meet at the corners andreinforced by metal braces 2|, and as these frames are upholstered toprovide the mattresses of the bed there are cross wires 22 for the p pse of supporting coil springs 23a, although any other construction ofmattressand supporting means therefor may be provided, it beingunderstood that the back section l5 has dual upholstered surfaces, onefor a cushioned front when the structure is arranged as a divan and theother-providing one of the mattress sections for. the bed. On the otherhand, the upper portion only of the frame of the seat section isupholstered inasmuch as it is moved horizontally in extending the samefrom the main frame while the back is folded down which brings the rearmattress surface thereof uppermost. Furthermore, in order to support theforward end of the seat section when it is extended in bed form thefront corners are provided with posts terminating in feet [4a adapted tothe general design of foot pieces illustrated in Figs.

1 and 2 of the drawings.

For the purpose of upholstering the seat and back sections of theconvertible divan and bed the metal frames hereinbefore described aresurrounded by wooden sin'ips 23 (see Fig. 5), the one in the front ofthe seat section being in the form of a wide board to which the postsIla. are attached and braced by metal straps 2 la.

The seat section It is connected to the main frame for extension infront of the latter by means of two links 24 and 25, and as these linksare duplicated at opposite ends of the structure a description of oneset will apply also to the other set, like numerals of reference beingemployed. The link 24 is bent laterally, while the link 25 is bentoutwardly intermediate its length and carries a plate 26 riveted theretoand extending at opposite sides thereof for the attachment ofcounterbalancing springs 28, 28a, and it will be noted by reference tothe drawings that these links are pivoted at one end to the end anglebars of the metal seat frame and at the other end to a plate 21 attachedto an end wall of the box forming the main frame whereby when said seatframe is moved from its position on said main frame to extended positionin forming the bed it is slightly elevated so as to clear the floor. Theforward end is then supported by the comer posts a while the rear end issupported on the forward end of the side pieces of the main frame,leaving a space between the rear ends of the seat section and main frameto receive the back of the divan or sofa when folded down on the mainframe, and in this position the mattressesare in alignm as indicated bydotted lines in Fig. 3. The counterbalancing springs 28, 28a serve toease the weight of the seat section in shifting or swinging the samefrom one position to the other, and for this Purpose spiral spring 28extends forwardly from the lower end of plate 26 and is connected to theupper end of the front wall of .the main frame by a screw 280, whilespiral spring 281; extends rearwardly from the upper end of said plate26 and is connected to a screw eye 28b secured to an end wall of themain frame. As the The back section I! is also connected to the mainframe by a pair of links, 29, 30, pivoted'at one end to the metal frameof said back section and at the other end to a plate 32 secured to anend wall of the box forming the main frame. In this instance link 30 isbent at a slight obtuse angle to form a stop in supporting the back atan inclination, for which purpose it engages the.

lower crosspiece of the metal frame of the back as shown in Fig. 4, andit is also bent outwardly and has riveted thereto a plate 3| for theattachme'nt of a counterbalancing spiral spring 33, which latter extendsfrom the outer end of said plate to an intermediate portion of the link29, whereby the expansion and contraction of said spring eases thelowering of the back when the divan is converted to a bed and assists inraising I the back when the article of furniture is to be used as adivan or sofa. The links are ar ranged in a particular manner forpermitting the folding and unfolding of the back without moving thearticle of furniture away from the wall against which it may be placed,as well as for the lower end of the back, which changes position onlyslightly in the operation, while bent link 30 pivoted to the back alittle farther away from the end than the pivot point of link 29 limitsthe rearward swinging movement of said back, as hereinbefore explained,and to this end cooperates with the other link and inclined upper edgeat the rear end of the side pieces of the main frame, and there is alsoa cooperation of these links with the counterbalancing spring. vTofurther provide for this operation of the back section the lower edgesof the side pieces thereof are cut away or beveled at their rear ends,as shown in the drawings (Fig. 3), and these beveled edges alsoaccommodate the positioning of the mattress ofthe seat section againstthe lower part of the cushioned back for the divan or sofa, (see Fig.1). In some instances instead of having the cushion or back in the formof upholstering, the front portion of the back may be finished toreceive loose pillows, and of course the rear portion of the back may beprovided with any desired type or thickness of mattress. As hereinbeforeexplained the links 29 and 30 are connected at their lower ends to theattaching plate 32, and for securing this attaching plate to the side ofthe box frame it is provided with screw holes 34. The stationary mainframe being in the form of a box it may be used for the purpose ofstoring pillows, blankets, or other bedding.

From the drawings it will be noted that when the sections are arrangedfor use as a divan or sofa the back inclines rearwardly from the seat atthe usual angle (see Fig. 4) and in placing this article of furniture ina room the upper end of back may be against the wall or in the usualposition, and that in converting the divan to a bed thelower end of saidback section will project only a slight distance beyond the main frame-so as to not require movement thereof, notwithstanding the fact thatthe rear portion of the back is thickly upholstered and consequently ifhinged in the usual manner would project to such an extent as tonecessitate movement of the Structure away from its original positioncontiguous to the adjoining wall of the room in which the article offurniture is placed. The construction herein shown and describedtherefore permits the use of feet for the main frame havinga'substantial bearing on the floor, an advantage in this instance forthe reason. that the operation of my improved form of convertible divanand bed obviates the labor of moving the article of furniture inconverting it, and also saves the surface of the floor from the scarringwhich usually occurs in the use of movable furniture. These-advantagesalso accrue in respect to the seat section as the arrangement of linksprovides for a walk-over movement of said seat section, for when it isswung forwardly the feet Ila come squarely down on the floor and do notdrag across as in the case of slidable extension sections.

It will be understood that the arrangement of the connecting links andcounterbalancing springs between the main frame and cooperating sectionsof the convertible divan and bed may be modified within the spirit andscope of my invention and yet accomplish the main purposes in respect tofixed position of the article of furniture, stability of construction,and ease of operation.

I claim:-

1. A convertible divan and bed comprising a main frame, an extensibleseat section, means for connecting said seat section to themain framefor the extension thereof in forming the bed, a foldable back section,and means for connecting said back section to the main frame including apair of companion links pivoted at one end within the main frame inspaced apart relation and at the other end within the back section at aslight distance from the lower end thereof, one

of the links forming a fulcrum for the swinging movement of the back andthe other link bent at an angle and pivoted to the back-section ad- Ijoining the pivot point of the first mentioned link for the engagementof the lower end of the back with said links in positioning said back ata rearward inclination.

2. A convertible divan and bed comprising a main frame the upper edgesof the sides of which are beveled downwardly at their rear ends,anextensible seat section, means for connecting said 'the links.

seat section to the main framefor the extension thereof in forming thebed, a foldable back section the lower edges of the sides of which arebeveled in the opposite direction from the bevel of the edges of themain frame, and means for connecting said back section to the main frameincluding a pair of companion links pivoted at one end within the mainframe in spaced apart relation and at the other end within the backsection at a slight distance from the lower end there- 4 of, one of thelinks being bent at anobtuse angle and pivoted to the back sectionadjoining the pivot point of the other link for the engagement of thelower end of the back with said links in supporting said back at arearward inclination on the beveled edges of the side pieces of the mainframe, and a spiral spring connected at its ends to said links forcounterbalancing the weight of the back section in the operationthereof.

3. A hinge connection for the movable back of an article of furniturehaving a box frame, comprising a pair of links pivoted within the boxframe in spapgd relation and within an end of the movable'ba'ck injuxtaposition at a slight distance from the lower end of said back, oneof the links forming a fulcrum for the swinging movementof the back andthe other -link bent at an angle, whereby said links are engaged by thelower end of the back and form a stop for the rearward swinging movementof said back to position it at a rearward inclination.

.4. In combination with an article of furniture including a box frameand back, the edges of the side pieces of said back and box frame beingbeveled in opposite directions at their rear ends to dispose the back ata rearward inclination when in open position, of a hinge for connectingthe back to the box frame comprising a pair of links pivoted to thesides of the box frame in spaced relation and within the end of themovable back in juxtaposition at a slight distance from the rear end ofsaid back, one of the links forming a fulcrum for the swinging movementof the back and the other link bent at an angle, whereby said links areengaged by the lower end of the back and form a stop for the rearwardswinging movement of said back, together with a counterbalancing springconnected to and extending between FOX.

